An Echo in the Mafia (Echo Reid, Reid Family Book #1)

Part 73

Luke couldn't wipe the smile off his face.

There she was, sleeping soundly next to him- Snoring up a storm and warming his heart. When did he become so fucking sentimental?

He had a lot of different thoughts after listening to Nadia's story. The first one was that he regretted not taking care of Guzman himself, the second was that he would kill Grace. He was furious, so god damned furious when he stepped back into the SUV that he didn't immediately realize that Echo had started to sob. She was sobbing uncontrollably, full blown ugly cry. The moment he saw her, his heart absolutely melted and he pulled her into his arms, trying his best to console her.

He didn't know what it was about Echo's puffy red face but he just fell apart at the sight of it. Nothing else mattered except that he make her feel safe again.  He completely forgot about what Nadia told him and focused all his energy on holding Echo. She clung to him, desperately needing to feel him closer and he spent the entire drive kissing her head tenderly and telling her he would never let something like that happen again.

He looked over to his phone. Nadia had gone on back to North Town while he and Echo had stayed in New York. She was exhausted and by the time they pulled into a hotel parking garage, she had already fallen asleep in his arm, still sniffling. He hated having to wake her for check in but he also knew that she would appreciate getting a bath and having something to eat.

Dinner had been brought up by the time she'd made it out of the shower, looking so small and frail in the bathrobe and he held his breath, wondering if now that the danger had passed she would push him away. It might sound selfish after what she'd been through but all he wanted was to keep holding her close.

"Hungry? I had something brought up." He said nervously.

"This late?" She asked, wondering what he was able to get.

"Yeah, well the great thing about New York is that you can get almost anything at any hour." He said with a smile, lifting the lid off the plate. It smelled great and if she was honest, she was starving.

"Thank you." She said, taking a seat and poking around at the food. "I've never been to New York before."

"Really?" He asked, genuinely surprised. He knew Echo's family was very well off and they'd done quite a bit of travelling.

"Yeah, all my sisters have but I just never got to it." Echo said softly.

"Then I'll bring you." He said, making her look up. Her lips melded into a gentle smile.

"I'd like that." She said with a deep sigh. Echo forked the food around for a moment, obviously something on her mind. He wanted to reach out and tell her everything but he also didn't want to distraught her at this moment. Right now wasn't about him, it was about making sure she okay after what she'd been through.

"You know, Luke." She said, taking a baby carrot off the plate before dipping it in hummus. "I've been going over everything in my head- too many times to count now. Everything- everything that has happened since I met you. Being with you... it's been so hard."

Luke felt his heart drop. She was going to leave.

"I understand. You're free to go, Echo. I won't try to stop you." He said, making her snap her head up. "I really don't deserve you. You deserve everything in the world."

"Is that what you want?" She asked, feeling the tears begin to prick her eyes.

"It's not about what I want." He said, absolutely shocking her into silence. Since when were things not about what Luke wanted? That was how this whole thing started- because he wanted something and wouldn't take no for an answer.